The North Wales Burlesque and Cabaret Festival returns to Colwyn Bay for the third year this weekend.

Boasting some of the best homegrown and international acts in the world of burlesque, it's fast becoming a premier event for both performers and fans.

Many will have a preconceived idea of what the act of burlesque is, and some might even consider it a little vulgar.

But is it all sexy strippers and nipple tassels? Ahead of the event, we spoke to performer Kimberley Edmunds, who goes by the stage name Foxee Stole, to find out more.

"I've been performing all my life." she explains. "I did a dance and drama degree, but when I left I didn't perform for ages.

"But then, when I got divorced, I found burlesque, and found it a way to empower myself, discovering who I was again."

But the act started small. However as she started performing, more and more people came out of the woodwork, and she went on to start a troupe that practised in the basement of a restaurant.

"We started a troupe - Chris's Kitchenettes." said Kim.

"We did lots of little shows, then we started developing our own characters and our own routines. We were much closer to that traditional burlesque act."

Celeste Etoile, one of the Seren yn Codi semi-finalists set to perform in Colwyn Bay this weekend (Image: NWBCF)

But it all changed in 2014 when she met her partner, Russ, who you will probably recognise as the Conwy Jester: "He's a circus performer so we teamed up to create a festival that brings all the types of skills together to North Wales- not just burlesque as you probably think it is.

"And since I met Russ, my act has completely changed. I no longer do what people think of as burlesque. I now consider myself more of a magician and I combine dance and magic together. It's a different style of burlesque act - and I still teach my burlesque classes too.

The festival is based heavily on the traditional burlesque and cabaret shows - not the sultry strip acts associated with the performance today.

There are some modern "strip tease" acts but the festival is aiming to get back to the roots of burlesque (Image: Daily Post Wales)

"In modern times, people see burlesque as all strip teases." she explains, "but the thing is, traditionally, there's no stripping involved at all.

"The original shows were all comedy shows - satire of politics and the upper classes.

"Most modern shows are literally just strip shows, but we're trying to take it back. We have comedians, musicians, jugglers. We do magic, we have aerialists, we have escapologists, pole dancers, all sorts of acts.

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"We still do have some strip teases but we make sure they have stage presence too and showcase some talents. And we make sure they aren't sleazy. I know some burlesque shows are, but we aim to make sure there's something else to it.

"We like to call it a 'variety show for adults'".

"The competition that we have, it's more of what people expect to be burlesque. But that's simply because the people who apply are professional strip tease artists. But anyone is welcome to apply.

"We have six acts in the finals that are in that style, but they are all different. We've got one who does chair balancing as part of her act, one who is quite rock themed and another who is traditional who has the big powder puffs.

"But then the other Friday night is a male comedy duo, and we have a belly dance troupe coming too.

"On the Saturday we have a pole dancer. But she's very classy in what she does and it's very artistic, we call her a pole artist rather than a pole dancer."

Foxee Stole live in action (Image: NWCBF)

Despite moving away from the seductive style of burlesque, Kim is still avidly promoting body positivity, which is a key theme that underpins the festival.

"When I first started out, I stripped off, but since 2014 I transitioned into the act I perform now.

"Revealing yourself in front of an audience, it can be scary, but a lot of it is adrenaline, especially when people cheer you on. And when there's a group of you, it's like a sisterhood. It's all body-positive, which is what we promote at the festival. We work on developing people's confidence and self esteem.

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"We have people all ages, all body shapes and sizes, all genders - we've even had 'boylesque' performers in the past, which is where men do it too. It's just empowering.

"We tend generally to get more women than men at the festival - but that's sort of standard with burlesque because it's all about body positivity and support. It tends to be the case at the shows too. Men who do come, more often than not, are accompanying their partners.

"You don't really get the stereotypical pervy man in the back either.

"If you get the occasional one that does, there's always someone to get rid of them without any trouble."

The North Wales Burlesque and Cabaret Festival takes place on Friday January 25 and Saturday January 26 2019 at Theatr Colwyn, Colwyn Bay. Over 18s only.

You can book tickets online here, by calling the box office or at the venue on the day.